Neighborly is the marketplace for neighborhood investment
Unless you’re a real big shot, you probably don’t get many opportunities to invest in the municipal bonds market. Municipal bonds are how cities and public agencies pay for their projects, such as parks, bridges, hospitals, and schools. Every day, cities raise around $1 billion to fund public projects. These municipal investments are so stable that they are really more like loans: they have a fixed interest rate, the returns are rarely taxable, and they are almost always paid back on time.
In other words, municipal bonds help fund projects that benefit the general public, while more or less guaranteeing a good return for investors. The problem? The municipal bond market is inaccessible to the layperson. In order to invest in the municipal bond market, you’d need a broker, a few million or billion bucks, and you’d need to be well versed in market jargon.
Neighborly hopes to change all that by giving everyday investors a chance to crack into the municipal bonds market, while supporting their local cities and projects they care about. It’ the first ever Community Investment Marketplace that hopes to give “direct access to investment opportunities once reserved for ultra wealthy individuals and global banks.”
Search by city or purpose, and buy those municipal bonds
When the site launches this summer, users will be able to log in and browse investment opportunities, searching by city or by purpose. Care about education? Invest in a university. Care about health care? Buy a bond to help build a new hospital. You’ll be able to create a personal profile to indicate how much capital you are starting with, plus what kind of projects, and which cities, you want to invest in.
Neighborly will find matching investment opportunities and will keep you notified, as municipal bonds tend to sell quickly. You’ll even be able to calculate an estimated return on investment.
Neighborly gives you an opportunity not only to make investments with an almost guaranteed pay off, but also a chance to invest directly into projects near you. Picture yourself with your wallet full, strolling through a lovely new park that you helped to fund.
Neighborly intro video
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